Community archives and the health of the internet

Abstract

This chapter discusses the issues surrounding the use of digital technologies by community archives. Community groups often find that the technical, financial, and logistical demands of maintaining digital resources are considerable. This tempts them to use commercial platforms whose longevity is not assured and which raise issues of privacy and manipulation. As everyone is increasingly working in a digital environment, the quality of that environment affects day-to-day life almost as profoundly as the physical environment. The health of the digital ecosystem on which we all depend affects the ability of community archives to achieve their aims of creating shared spaces of self-representation, collaboration, and memory. Every day seems to bring further revelations of the manipulation of social media, security breaches, personal abuse, and digital disinformation. These anxieties can make it seem that the vision of a digital space promoting community self-representation and collaboration is under threat.